Dr. Nguyen Si Dung: 'Rearranging the country' to reach out to the ocean

If we want to become a developed nation, we cannot carry a cumbersome and stagnant apparatus. We must streamline, be efficient, and "reorganize the country". Not just to make it neat and pretty, but to make that apparatus truly a tool for development, serving the people, and leading the nation into the future.

Dr. Nguyen Si Dung believes that rearranging the country will help the nation move into the future.

In a symbolic and rallying speech, General Secretary To Lam affirmed: "We must rearrange the country to be neat and effective." This is not just a simple administrative reform directive, but a reform declaration of historical significance. Because the "country" here is not just a geographical map, but an entire system of power organization from the central to local levels. If it is not rearranged to be neat, transparent and effective, the country will find it difficult to rise strongly in the era of global competition.

Comprehensive and radical reform

Firstly, streamlining the central apparatus: Few focal points, high efficiency. A modern national management apparatus cannot exist in parallel with too many focal points with overlapping functions, which not only wastes resources but also reduces operational efficiency. Therefore, merging ministries with similar functions such as Finance and Planning and Investment, Transport and Construction, Natural Resources and Environment and Agriculture , is not only reasonable but also mandatory.

At the central level, streamlining the apparatus is not only about reducing the number of ministries, but also about redesigning executive and strategic functions. It is necessary to clearly distinguish between the long-term strategic policy-making agency and the daily administrative implementation agency. This will create a distinct two-tier apparatus: the thinking brain and the action arm, not mixed up or overlapping.

Second, local reform: Large scale – Small apparatus. For the first time in nearly a century, Vietnam has courageously raised the issue of merging provinces, abolishing the district level and building a two-tier government model. For a long time, the three-tier administrative model (province – district – commune) has been cumbersome, stagnant, and prone to layers of asking and giving. The shift to a two-tier government model (province and commune/ward) is to reduce the intermediate levels and shorten the distance between the State and the people.

District-level authorities, which were once just administrative bridges, are becoming bottlenecks. Eliminating this intermediate level not only saves thousands of positions, but is also a leap forward in thinking about organizing the state apparatus in a modern direction.

The great philosophies of “rearranging the country”

First, the closer the government is to the people, the more effective it is. At the center of any model of power organization must be the people - the supreme subject of public power. The philosophy of "being close to the people is effective" originates from a fundamental truth in modern public administration: All public power must directly serve the public interest, not just preserve the power structure.

The two-tier local government model - province and commune/ward - helps shorten the distance between the operating center and policy beneficiaries. When the commune level is given more power, has a clearer budget, and is more organized, they will handle work closer to the people, closer to the people, and in accordance with the actual context of people's lives. Issues such as issuing documents, handling complaints, business registration, construction permits, etc. will no longer have to go through the "intermediary station" at the district level, thereby reducing time, costs, and administrative conflicts.

Furthermore, when power is closer to the people, the pressure from social supervision is also stronger. Commune officials cannot easily make mistakes, because the people are right there, seeing and knowing clearly. This is the method to prevent corruption and negativity from the root through transparency, accountability and public pressure.

Second, reduce the hierarchy, increase the effectiveness and speed of power. One of the chronic diseases of the administrative system is the intermediate hierarchy, where power is dispersed, overlapped, and often leads to stagnation. The district level has existed for many years as a "transit station", not having enough power to make decisions, not being close enough to the people to serve closely, but being the point where procedures, delays, and requests and grants arise.

By reducing this hierarchy, power is redesigned in a more linear, transparent, and transparent way. Decisions no longer require multiple layers of approval; responsibilities are no longer “pushed back and forth”; and policy flows become shorter, faster, and more precise. This not only increases the effectiveness of the apparatus but also clarifies individual responsibility, a prerequisite for controlling power.

Instead of "not yet in hand" or "unclear authority", people and businesses will have quick access to policies, timely government response, and especially public trust will be enhanced thanks to clarity, transparency and consistency in public authority conduct.

Third, redesign functions, freeing the apparatus from fragmented thinking. A common mistake in reform is to confuse “merger” with “substantive reform”. Merging mechanical clues without redesigning internal functions and processes will lead to a “two-headed snake”, where functions overlap, responsibilities are dispersed and productivity declines.

Therefore, reorganizing the country is not just about downsizing the organization, but also about redesigning the apparatus according to the principle of function - output. Each agency must have its own tasks, clear products, and not encroach on each other. Only then can each department truly operate as a link in the general machine instead of working while waiting, managing while avoiding responsibility.

This is an important shift from the traditional administrative model to a modern governance model, where power is delegated along with clear responsibilities, where organizations operate according to tasks rather than the old “power map”.

Fourth, national power must come from a lean, strong and intelligent apparatus. In the modern world , a powerful nation cannot exist in a cumbersome and conservative apparatus. As technology and globalization shorten all distances, a late decision can also cause a country to lose opportunities.

Vietnam cannot enter the era of power in 2045 with an administrative “framework” designed in the last century. It must be re-established, streamlined, and optimized. Not just by reducing the number of employees, but by rebuilding the entire national operating system – where technology, data, people, and processes are effectively connected.

Moreover, “rearranging the country” is also a starting point for digital governance, digital government and digital society. A smart, interconnected and responsive apparatus will be the foundation for Vietnam to not only keep up with, but also lead in new areas such as artificial intelligence, industry 4.0, green economy and innovation.

The two-tier local government model - province and commune - helps shorten the distance between the operating center and policy beneficiaries. (Source: VGP)

The challenge is not small but it is inevitable.

No major reform is easy and "reorganizing the country" on a system-wide scale will of course face countless obstacles. First of all, there is the local mentality: Each province, each district, each commune is associated with a history, an identity, and it is not easy to give up the name or local power. In many places, administrative boundaries are seen not only as management boundaries but also as symbols of honor, of "local sovereignty". Merging provinces and communes is therefore not simply a technical matter, but touches on community emotions, which are always sensitive and difficult to resolve without reasonable dialogue.

Along with that is the concern about personal interests and staff positions - a common obstacle in any streamlining of the apparatus. When merging organizations, reducing administrative levels or consolidating focal points, it is inevitable that there will be transfers and rearrangements of personnel, and even some positions will be cut. Although the goal is to improve administrative efficiency, in reality, direct impacts on human rights are always the biggest obstacle to internal consensus.

Not stopping there, a structural barrier is the lack of uniformity in the current legal system. Many laws related to the organization of the state apparatus, local government organization, budget, decentralization, delegation of power, etc. are still operating according to the traditional three-level model. If the system is not promptly amended, supplemented, and unified, the reform can easily fall into a situation where “the top orders but the bottom does not listen”, or “the top opens the road, but the bottom has no vehicles”. At that time, major policies can easily be eroded by shortcomings in the law and implementation.

But difficulties are not a reason to delay, but a reason to act more decisively. No matter how great these obstacles are, they cannot be a valid reason to retain a cumbersome, overlapping and ineffective apparatus. On the contrary, these difficulties only show the importance and urgency of reform.

Rearrange the country to reach out to the ocean

“Rearranging the country” is not just about rearranging the administrative map. It is an act that demonstrates the intelligence, courage and aspiration to lead the country into a new era – where each territorial unit is not only a boundary, but also an optimal design for development. And so, although challenging, this is a task that cannot be avoided and must be done at all costs.

Vietnam’s history has witnessed many administrative reforms, but most of them were technical or half-hearted. This time, the “reorganization of the country” is a comprehensive institutional revolution, from redesigning the organizational model, functions, and powers, to rebuilding data infrastructure, allocating resources, and redesigning the relationship between levels of government.

It requires: Progressive reform thinking, breaking away from old administrative ruts; Political courage, to face local, conservative reactions; Organizational capacity for implementation, from legal institutionalization to concrete implementation; People's trust, because only when people are united, reform will be successful.

Vietnam is standing at the threshold of history. If we want to become a developed nation, we cannot carry a cumbersome and stagnant apparatus. We must streamline, we must be efficient, we must "rearrange the country". Not just to make it neat and beautiful, but to make that apparatus truly become a tool for creating development, serving the people, and leading the nation into the future.

"Rearranging the country" is an institutional cleanup, but more deeply, it is a renewal of leadership thinking, rebuilding public trust and initiating an era of powerful construction.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/ts-nguyen-si-dung-sap-xep-lai-giang-son-de-vuon-minh-ra-bien-lon-321964.html